Whilst perusing old notebooks, we came across a translation of a short rihla copied in 1850/51 describing a Sayfawa sultan's pilgrimage to Mecca in 1727/28, written by a descendant of the Sayfawa. According to Omer El-Nagar, who included a translation of the short text in his thesis, West Africa and the Muslim pilgrimage: An historical study with special reference to the nineteenth century, the text was from the personal library of Abu Bakr al-Miskin. al-Miskin, a descendant of the Sayfawa and specifically, of Muhammad Yanbu, likely possessed several other papers and books that shed further light on the history of Borno. Unfortunately, the text describing the hajj of a sultan in 1728 appears to conflate details of Ali b. Umar with the sultan in question, likely Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun in Borno. However, we know from the Diwan that Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun in Borno ruled for 16 years, which aligns nicely with this source's allusion to the mai reigning for 15 years after his pilgrimage. In addition, the Diwan included a reference to a famine that lasted for two years during the reign of this mai.
Where things get interesting is in the details from the source from Abu Bakr al-Miskin's library. According to this source, Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun took the "Sudan" road for his pilgrimage. This is interesting since as late as the 1690s, the Sayfawa sultans traveled through the Fazzan to reach Egypt. According to this account, however, he traveled through Bagirmi, Wadai, and Darfur to reach Egypt, from whence he crossed the Red Sea. It is likely that this occurred right at the beginning of his reign or before he became mai. In addition, he settled slaves in the lands he traveled through, allegedly leaving 5,000 captives in Bagirmi, and apparently over 4000 in Wadai. While this is difficult to interpret, El-Nagar suggests the author may have been alluding to similar practices of medieval Sayfawa rulers, who settled slaves in various parts of their kingdom and abroad. Either way, one wonders if the settlement of large number of captives in Bagirmi and Wadai can be interpreted to signify that Wadai and Bagirmi were still tributary to Borno in some form, as well as a recognition of the establishment of secure pilgrimage routes through Bagirmi, Wadai and Darfur for West African Muslims. After all, if the king established slave settlements there, one may assume they may have also served pilgrims from Borno who passed through the eastern lands, perhaps serving as possible nuclei for later settlements of Borno pilgrims.
Once in the Hijaz, Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun spent all his funds. Miraculously, with the aid of the ulama, pebbles were turned into gold (clearly fictional). The creation of this extra source of money allowed the sultan to purchase slaves. As for his return journey, he passed through Egypt and returned on the Sudan road, again confirming the placement of slaves in Wadai and Bagirmi. Since Bagirmi and Wadai recognized the suzerainty of Borno in some form at this period and the fact that a mai could travel unmolested through their territories, suggests a degree of security for Muslim pilgrims was already established by 1728. Furthermore, Kanuri praise songs seem to commemorate this mai's reassertion of authority over the Kurata Arabs in Kanem, a Tunjur group, since the song refers to the Kurata as slaves of the mai. It is certainly plausible for this mai to have reasserted Sayfawa influence in Kanem and the lands nearby, including Bagirmi and Wadai. Indeed, the praise song to him specifically praises him for creating settlements out of the relocation of captives. For example, the following verses of "The Song of the Ngijima to the Sultan of Bornu" from J.R. Patterson's Kanuri Songs allude to this practice:
You son of Aji, can collect or disperse people at your will
And turn again, and make a town (with those you have dispersed)
You are the scourge of Jillam, Dalla Darge and Dakkinam Dalla Damaram
Some towns are founded during the cold season of the year
But some of yours have been founded as the result of your victories, Aji Gana the Intriguer
Even more intriguing is the cause of Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun's death. According to the Diwan, he died in Gazargamo in 1744. The manuscript describing his pilgrimage, however, states, "He raided Krowrowa and died there in Krowrowa where his grave is visited" (El-Nagar, 399). If this is accurate, then the Diwan omitted the cause of his death in a defeat or failed raid of Krowrowa. Unfortunately, it is unclear what Krowrowa is referring to. It may be Kwararafa, a "pagan" polity to the south which was known to have engaged in conflicts with Borno during the reign of Ali b. Umar in the 1600s. Yet, even into the 18th century, reports of Kwararafa as a powerful state which occasionally entered into conflict with Borno reached the French consul in Tripoli, Lemaire. Alternatively, "Krowrowa" could be a reference to another polity or region subjected to raids by the Sayfawa, since the Kanuri appear to have usually referred to Kwararafa by Kwona or Kona.
To make things even more confusing, the text later mentions Muhammad b al-Hajj Hamdun as a mai who performed the pilgrimage. But, if the year 1727/1728 for the hajj is accurate, and a regnal length of about 15 years followed, then Muhammad b. al-Hajj Hamdun is the best candidate. Lamentably, since the author appears to have confused Ali b. Umar for the mai who performed the hajj in 1727 or 1728, one can only use this source cautiously. Nonetheless, it does suggest that Islamic pilgrims were using the "Sudan" Road to travel from West Africa to Mecca by the early 1700s. This development seems more plausible for the 18th century, since Ali b. Umar and subsequent 17th century sultans appear to have crossed the Sahara and traveled through North Africa rather than taking the "Sudan" road for the pilgrimage.